Starspawn

by Wendy N. Wagner

  And immediately spat it out.

  “What the hell is this?” I snapped at the servant.

  “W-water!” he replied, holding up his tray like a shield.

  “Well, did I ask for water, Cecim, or did I ask for a gods-damned drink?”

  “S-sorry, Shy!” he cried out, cowering. “Sorry, mistress!”

  “‘Shy’? ‘Mistress’?”

  It wasn’t until I looked and saw Lady Sidara, her mouth wide open in puzzlement, that I realized I might have just ruined things.

  “What did you call her?” The noblewoman glanced from me to Cecim, the servant, and the puzzlement turned to irritation. It was a full-blown scowl when she whirled upon Lord Helsen and saw the thin nobleman quaking upon the dais, the sweat on his face having gone from beads to big as moons.

  “What did he call her?” she demanded. “What’s going on here, Herevard?”

  “Uh, well … that is…” Lord Helsen’s tongue seemed two sizes too large for him at that moment, and he fumbled over his words. “You see, Lady Sidara, when … when we make mistakes and … and things are said … and we try to make them right and…”

  “Ah, give it up, Herevard,” I said. “Whatever excuse you’re choking on, it’s obvious she’s not going to buy it.”

  Lady Sidara turned to me, shock wrestling with outrage on her features as she watched me unfasten the shackles around my wrists and drop them to the floor.

  I looked up at her, blinking. “What?”

  “You … you’re not a prisoner at all!” She pointed a finger at me that would have been accusing had it not been so dainty. “You lied to me!”

  “If you’ll recall, good lady,” I replied, holding up my liberated hands in defense, “I didn’t say ten words to you. Any lying came specifically from that man.”

  Lord Helsen squirmed under my finger, flailing as though he could pull an excuse from thin air. But instead, all he did was thrust a finger right back at me and let out a rather unlordly screech.

  “She was blackmailing me!”

  “I was not!” I shouted back. “I asked you specifically what the information was worth to you! You’re the one that came up with the number!”

  “Oh, don’t you turn this on me, you lying Qadiran—”

  “Katapeshi!”

  “ENOUGH!”

  To look at her, you wouldn’t have thought such a little lady could come up with such a bellowing voice. But it seemed Lady Sidara, breathing heavily, holding her hands up in a demand for silence, was a woman of more than a few surprises.

  “No more lies.” She split her scowl between me and Lord Helsen. “And no more blaming. The truth. Now.”

  The nobleman and I exchanged glances for moment—or rather, I exchanged a glance and he gave me a look that suggested he might soil himself. At that, I just rolled my eyes and sighed.

  “All right, fine,” I said. “What I did might, in some countries, be construed as blackmail.” I waved absently toward the dais. “I got some information on Herev—” I caught myself; didn’t want to rub salt in the wound. “On Lord Helsen and asked him what it was worth to him to keep it quiet.”

  “And what was it worth?” Lady Sidara asked.

  “Two months in a nice bedroom at his manor,” I replied. “Waited on hand and foot by Cecim here.” I shot a glare at the servant. “Who should damn well know by now what I mean when I say I want a drink!”

  Cecim squealed and scurried off, still holding his tray up. I sighed and looked back to Lady Sidara.

  “Anyway, when he said you had a job that needed doing, we made up this bit about the private dungeon.” I gestured to my clothes and grime. “Though, had I known it would turn out like this, I wouldn’t have bothered painting so much dirt on myself.”

  Lady Sidara frowned.

  “And what information did you have to make…” She gestured over me. “This seem intelligent?”

  “Well, I—”

  “You swore you wouldn’t tell!” Lord Helsen piped up, his face a red-hot contortion of embarrassment.

  “Herevard, what good do you think not telling her would do?” I looked back to the noblewoman and sighed. “I found out about his mistress. A lovely little halfling woman who visits his chambers every other night.” I shot her a wink. “Herry likes his short women.”

  Lord Helsen’s mouth hung open. His eyes looked like they were about to roll out of their sockets. If I could have read his thoughts, I had no doubt that they’d be mostly my name attached to variations of the word ‘strangle.’

  Frankly, I wasn’t sure what the big deal was. I always thought they looked cute together.

  Lady Sidara, for her part, didn’t seem particularly upset, either. She slowly turned a sweet, sad smile to Lord Helsen.

  “Oh, Herevard,” she said. “We’ve all known about Noma for years now.”

  “W-what?” Lord Helsen said. “Everyone? All of Yanmass?”

  She nodded gently. He made a soft whimpering sound.

  “Even Lady Stelvan?”

  “She was the first to know, Herry.”

  “Well, then.” I kicked off my ankle shackles and sent them skidding across the hallway. “I guess we’ve all learned an important lesson about honesty today.” I began wiping the painted-on grime from my skin. “And it seems my time with Herry is at an end. Give me a couple of hours to have a bath and I’m all yours, my lady.”

  “What?” Lady Sidara looked at me, anger flashing across her features. “You assume I’d still hire you now, after … after…”

  “Oh, what? You were happy to have me when you thought I was a thief, but now that I’m an extortionist, you’re too good for me?” I rolled my eyes. “A touch hypocritical, don’t you think?”

  “It’s not that! It’s just…” She rubbed the back of her neck, helpless. “This … this is a delicate operation, one that I am intent on seeing carried through. I need people I can trust.”

  “Liar.”

  She looked at me like I had just slapped her. “What?”

  “If you needed people you could trust, you would have found a knight or a brave warrior or some lovesick noble. What you need is someone who can get the job done, and the fact that you’re here tells me that the people you can trust simply can’t do that.”

  She fixed me with a long, methodical stare. And though it made me feel every bit as naked as it had the first time, I held my ground and my smile like a sword and shield.

  “And can you get the job done?” she asked.

  “Are you still going to pay?”

  “I will.”

  “Then I can.” I turned to walk away toward the hall’s exit. “But, as I said, let me get a bath first. I’m not going to talk business covered in filth.”

  “Yes, fine, whatever.” Lady Sidara stalked behind me. “Glad to be doing business, then, Miss…” She paused. “Is your name even Shaia?”

  “Of course it is.” I glanced over my shoulder, spared her a wink. “But my friends call me Shy.”

  THE PATHFINDER TALES LIBRARY

  Called to Darkness by Richard Lee Byers

  Winter Witch by Elaine Cunningham

  The Wizard’s Mask by Ed Greenwood

  Prince of Wolves by Dave Gross

  Master of Devils by Dave Gross

  Queen of Thorns by Dave Gross

  King of Chaos by Dave Gross

  Lord of Runes by Dave Gross

  Pirate’s Honor by Chris A. Jackson

  Pirate’s Promise by Chris A. Jackson

  Pirate’s Prophecy by Chris A. Jackson

  Beyond the Pool of Stars by Howard Andrew Jones

  Plague of Shadows by Howard Andrew Jones

  Stalking the Beast by Howard Andrew Jones

  Firesoul by Gary Kloster

  The Worldwound Gambit by Robin D. Laws

  Blood of the City by Robin D. Laws

  Song of the Serpent by Hugh Matthews

  Hellknight by Liane Merciel

  Nightglass by Liane Merciel
<
br />   Nightblade by Liane Merciel

  City of the Fallen Sky by Tim Pratt

  Liar’s Blade by Tim Pratt

  Liar’s Island by Tim Pratt

  Liar’s Bargain by Tim Pratt

  Reign of Stars by Tim Pratt

  Bloodbound by F. Wesley Schneider

  The Crusader Road by Michael A. Stackpole

  Death’s Heretic by James L. Sutter

  The Redemption Engine by James L. Sutter

  Forge of Ashes by Josh Vogt

  Skinwalkers by Wendy N. Wagner

  Starspawn by Wendy N. Wagner

  The Dagger of Trust by Chris Willrich

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Wendy N. Wagner grew up in a town so small it didn’t even have its own post office—or worse, cable. Forced to read for entertainment, she was doomed to walk a literary path. A Hugo Award-winning editor as well as a writer, she has over thirty short stories in print and currently serves as the Managing/Associate Editor for the genre magazines Lightspeed and Nightmare. Her first novel, Skinwalkers, is also a Pathfinder Tales adventure about Jendara and her family, who first appeared in the web fiction story “Mother Bears,” available for free at paizo.com/pathfindertales.

  Wendy lives with her very understanding family in Portland, Oregon. An avid gardener and board gamer, she can be found online at winniewoohoo.com. Or sign up for email updates here.

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  CONTENTS

  Title Page

  Copyright Notice

  Dedication

  Inner Sea Region

  Story Locations

  1. Harbor Wave

  2. Hope Stays Afloat

  3. Tall Cliffs and Sea Caves

  4. Stowaways

  5. The White Dagger

  6. Lures and Bobbers

  7. Of Deep Ones and Dry Ones

  8. Voices in the Wind

  9. Where There Is Darkness, Light

  10. Rockfall

  11. The Minds of Prisoners

  12. Life in the Dead City

  13. Star Taker

  14. The Politics of the Shore

  15. Tracking the Deep

  16. Clearing Cobwebs

  17. A Web of Horrors

  18. Mommy Longlegs

  19. The Bitterest Poison

  20. The Stars Obscured

  21. Star Taker

  22. Moon-Beasts and Minds

  23. In the Depths

  24. Saltwater

  25. Dead Moon Rising

  26. Falling Stars

  27. The Sleeping God

  28. Starspawn

  29. The Dreamer in Darkness

  Acknowledgments

  Glossary

  Excerpt from Pathfinder Tales: Shy Knives

  The Pathfinder Tales Library

  About the Author

  Copyright

  This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

  PATHFINDER TALES: STARSPAWN

  Copyright © 2016 by Paizo Inc.

  All rights reserved.

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  Maps by Crystal Frasier

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  First Edition: August 2016

  eISBN 9780765384324

  First eBook edition: June 2016